Not Proud?

On a night of patriotism – July 4 – a network reported that about 1/3 of the those polled said that they were not proud of their country – our country – my country!  On such a report, I muse.  

Why are some or even many not proud of the United States?

Yes, there have been and are significant failures on our part, but I don’t think the sum of those rise to equal or negate the good that this nation has done.

Good done by the United States, such as:  being engaged in some horrible wars on the behalf of others that they might enjoy the “life, liberty and pursuit of happiness” that we enjoy.  On the backside of those wars, we have not grabbed land nor demanded payment.  We have sacrificed vast amounts of money and blood to aid others.  We have received immigrants from all over the world (the legal way) as they sought a new life and we have helped them fulfill their dream.  We have developed medicines and medical procedures and shipped them all over the world (often deeply discounted with the cost put on the American taxpayer).  Many, many third world and hopeless areas have been made better by our care and our help.

Those who are not proud are focusing on failures – they are seeing the cup half empty or even focused on the cup a quarter empty.  I believe there is much for which to be thankful and proud. 

On one conservative network it was declared that what makes America great is freedom.  I take issue with that point and think therein lies some of our problem. 

First, while freedom is often and readily used in exchange for liberty, there is a difference.  Freedom is the idea that I can do as I please while liberty says that I have rights or privileges previously restricted or often not enjoyed by others, but now mine.  Liberty promotes the idea of the blessing it is that one can do what he can do.  Freedom leans toward demand or expectancy.  Liberty has a sense of thankfulness while freedom points to privilege.  I believe liberty is a much-preferred ideal for us to desire as a nation.  [pediaa.com. The main difference between liberty and freedom is that liberty is the state of being free from oppressive restrictions or control imposed by authority on one’s way of life, behavior, or political views, while freedom is the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants.]

Then, the idea that freedom has made us great.  Freedom is the result of something, not the cause of something.  In other words, I have freedom because someone or something made such a reality for me.  I have freedom at a great cost to some and to their loved ones.  Freedom is a gift – be thankful!!!

Thirdly, I don’t think that “freedom” will make America great again.  It is the hope of many to make America great – again!  Apparently, America was great at one point – at least to those who use the word “again.”  What are they longing for?  Most likely a personal peace and prosperity.  They are seeking a return to the good ole’ days of “life, liberty and pursuit of happiness”!  

What is almost never heard is anything about God as having a significant role in her past greatness.  For those who desire America to be great for the first time (those blue and socialist), they have no role for God in their “great” America.

The greatness of American in past days happened because of an acknowledgement and reverence for God.  From the Declaration of Independence – four references to God: “…the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them… that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights… appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world… with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence.”

In the 50’s, as our leaders saw the nation slipping from her foundation with the rise of atheism, humanism and narcissism; they added two phrases to our national vocabulary to remind us of what once made us great: “In God we Trust” and “One Nation under God.”

  I argue that past or future, America will only be great with God welcomed and revered.

  It was God who made America great and only an embrace of Him will make her great again!